Maharashtra’s sole school that offers education in Gondi (the language of the Gond tribe) faces closure threat.

Introduction

• Issue is More Than Closure of a School: The decision to shut down the only Gondi-medium school in Mohgaon village, located in the Fifth Schedule area of Gadchiroli district, Maharashtra, raises crucial questions about the protection of tribal languages and cultures.
• About the School: The school was established in 2019 following a resolution by the gram panchayat, aimed at providing primary education to tribal students in their mother tongue, Gondi.
• Constitutional Right: This initiative was in alignment with Article 29 and Article 350(A) of the Indian Constitution.
  • Article 29: Right to preserve distinct languages, scripts, and culture
  • Article 350(A): State must provide education in the mother tongue for minority students
• Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009 mandates quality education but lacks provisions for tribal languages.

Government’s Argument for Closure

• The local administration has argued that the school cannot continue to operate without recognition under the Right to Education Act (RTE), 2009.
• Without registration, the school’s standards cannot be monitored, and students may face difficulties transitioning to higher education.
• An education officer suggested that the students could be absorbed into other schools if the Gondi-medium school were closed. However, this bureaucratic justification overlooks the deeper issues at play.

Bureaucratic Barrier or Systemic Bias?

• The issue of non-recognition of the school is not merely about procedure but is fundamentally a question of power. 
• The refusal to recognize the school is a reflection of the structural and socio-political subordination of Adivasi communities, particularly their language and culture. 
• The state’s normative bias against tribal languages exacerbates this subordination. This situation demands attention to the moral and political context of this bureaucratic decision.

Jawaharlal Nehru’s Vision for Tribal Communities

• Jawaharlal Nehru strongly believed that Adivasi communities should be allowed to grow in harmony with their own traditions. His views were shaped by the history of colonial violence that nearly drove many tribal communities to extinction. 
• The Indian Constitution provides specific provisions to protect the Adivasi way of life, including their rights over land, language, culture, and customs. These provisions aim to enable tribal communities to participate in nation-building without losing their identity.

Forces of Absorption: Secular and Religious

• Secular Absorption: Tribal communities are often pushed into the mainstream by both the state and the market, leading to a loss of their unique cultural practices and way of life.
• Religious Absorption: In the religious realm, the distortion and erasure of tribal beliefs occur, as external religious forces seek to undermine indigenous spiritual traditions.
• Impact: Both secular and religious absorption forces weaken the tribal identity and erode cultural heritage, threatening the survival of indigenous cultures and languages.

Importance of Adivasi Languages

• Adivasi communities have an oral tradition that encompasses their myths, religious beliefs, and history. However, with the increasing erosion of tribal identities due to deforestation, urbanization, and market forces, these oral traditions and languages are under threat. 
• The loss of an Adivasi language could lead to the irreversible extinction of an entire cultural identity. Therefore, tribal languages must be granted special status to ensure their protection and survival.

Constitutional Moral Failure

• Sanskrit is included in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution and receives state-sponsored promotion, despite being spoken by only around 25,000 people. In contrast, Gondi, spoken by over 2.9 million people, remains neither recognized nor promoted at the state level.
• It is ironic that while the Indian Constitution recognizes Sanskrit as the Devbhasha (language of the gods), it fails to protect and promote the Janbhasha (language of the people) of Adivasi communities. This is a moral failure that must be addressed. 

Way Forward

• The first step towards remedying this failure is to recognize and support the Gondi-medium school and expand such schools across the country. 
• There should be an inclusion of Gondi language in the Eighth Schedule of the constitution.
• The government should implement special policies that focus on preserving and promoting tribal culture through tribal-led educational initiatives.
  • This would align with the constitutional mandate to protect the rights of minority groups, including tribal communities.

Conclusion

To honor the spirit of the Indian Constitution, it is imperative to recognize and protect tribal languages and educational initiatives that preserve their cultural identity. Only through such recognition can we ensure that Adivasi communities continue to thrive in the modern world without losing their unique heritage.

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